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Estate Planning

Minnesota Estate Planning Blog

Dedicated to educating Minnesota residents on the advantages of estate planning and breaking down the knowledge barrier that may prevent them from taking control of their future.
By James T. Anderson, Esq.

Post Frequency: 0.1/day

Last Entry: August 03, 2008 at 21:37:06

Simple Will vs Disclaimer Trust Will vs A-B Trust Pt. 1

Posted on August 03, 2008
The following is a letter I sent to a client describing the differences between a Simple Will, Disclaimer Trust Will and A-B Trust. I hope you find this information enjoyable and educational. The following information compares and contracts the basic tools we have regarding your estate plan...

Simple Will vs Disclaimer Trust Will vs A-B Trusts Part 2

Posted on August 03, 2008
Trust and Tax Savings Plan: The Trust and Tax Savings Plan utilized trusts, set up at the time of the execution of the will and other documents, to save on estate taxes by utilizing both spouses applicable exclusion amount. Several variations of this plan are available for a variety of situations...

Buying a house and your estate plan in Minnesota

Posted on July 09, 2008
It’s been a while since I’ve posted to my Minnesota Estate Planning Blog, and that’s because my wife and I have been on the hunt for a house. During our search I began to think of how buying your first home can greatly impact your estate planning needs...

Probate in Minnesota - Costs, Time Frame & Beneficiary Designations

Posted on May 21, 2008
The following is not legal adivce, rather it is a general description of the probate process as it applies to assets with beneficiary designations. Investment accounts with beneficiary designations: Investment accounts with beneficiary designations are non-probate assets, and as such will not be involved in the probate process...

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Do I need and estate plan in Minnesota?

Posted on May 21, 2008
As a Minnesota attorney, more specifically an estate planner, I am often asked this question. Well, actually I usually hear this as a statement rather than a question. People say that they do not need an estate plan, this is then followed by them saying they don’t have much property...

Estate Tax Consequences of Making Large Gifts

Posted on April 29, 2008
This article is not meant to be legal advice. It is a discussion relating to the possible tax consequences of giving large amounts of money. If you need advice relating to tax issues please seek out an experienced attorney or CPA. The following are a few options that people have when they want to give large [...

What is a Trust?

Posted on April 28, 2008
I am often asked this question. What in the world is a trust and how can they work for me? For the time being I am going to defer to Joel Shoenmeyer from the Death and Taxes Blog. Check out his podcast explaining trusts here. In a nutshell Trusts are vehichles in which property is owned...

Life Insurance Beneficiaries and Your Estate Plan

Posted on April 25, 2008
Creating a comprehensive estate plan is a great first step in planning for your future. Unfortunantly many people stop thinking about their plan after the will and trusts are signed without considering the effect that their beneficiary designations of life insurance and investments have on their overall plan...

The Marital Deduction and Estate Tax Law

Posted on April 15, 2008
The marital deduction is a wonderful thing, it allows the deceased spouse to transfer an unlimited amount of assets to the surviving spouse. Bill Gates could pass his multi-billion dollar fortunte to his wife upon his death tax free! But the fact that many people forget is that upon the death of the surviving spouse [...

This Blog Has Moved

Posted on April 11, 2008
Dear readers, I have moved my Estate Planning Blog over to my law firm website. Head on over to the new location of my blog for future posts here. Thanks for reading. Sincerely, Jim Anderson

Wills explained in a podcast

Posted on April 09, 2008
Joel Schoemeyer is at it again with his easy to understand estate planning podcasts. Joel is an estate planner in Illinois and he posts very helpful information at his blog Death and Taxes. This particular podcast focuses on wills, it includes some great information about what a will is and what it can do for you...

Wills explained in a podcast

Basics of Wills and Trusts Presentation

Posted on April 01, 2008
I am in the process of creating a presentation to inform people about the basics of Wills and Trusts. The presentation is meant to be an informal and fun way that people can learn about estate planning. I will be covering topics similar to what has been posted on this blog but would also like [...

Why you should not hold real estate in joint tenancy with your children

Posted on March 27, 2008
A few weeks ago I wrote about ways to avoid probate, in that post I mentioned that property that is jointly owned passes outside of the probate process. It sounds like a great way to pass your real estate to your children and save money in the process...

10 Myths about Health Care Directives and Living Wills

Posted on March 17, 2008
The American Bar Association (ABA) has created a list of 10 myths about Health Care Directives and Living Wills. The names of the documents the ABA refers to is a little different than the names we have in Minnesota. When the ABA refers to an Advanced Directive it is the same thing as a Health [...

Estate Planning Explained in a podcast

Posted on March 16, 2008
Joel Shoenmeyer provides a great overview of estate planning in his first podcast from his “Death and Taxes” blog. Click on the podcast link to head over to his blog and listen to the podcast. Joel is an Illinois estate planner and he will have podcasts covering a more in depth look at estate planning [...

How to avoid probate in Minnesota

Posted on March 12, 2008
Avoiding probate sounds like a great idea, so why doesn’t everyone structure their affairs to avoid probate? Well before we jump in to that topic we need to define probate. Probate is the legal proceeding through which assets will be transferred in accordance with a will or intestacy laws...

Will Parties: A comfortable way to learn more about wills and trusts

Posted on March 04, 2008
I was recently introduced to the idea of Will Parties by my financial planning guru, Mario Lucarelli. So what in the world is a Will Party? Do people get together to compare their wills, waving the paper over their head extolling the virtues of their estate plan? A will party generally consists of two things; a [...

Documents in a simple estate plan

Posted on February 26, 2008
A simple estate plan generally includes the following documents; a will, health care directive and power of attorney. But before we get to the good stuff it is important to know that this post, and the entire blog for that matter, is only general information and is not legal advice...

Marketing the Law Office of James T. Anderson

Posted on February 07, 2008
Attorneys, financial planners, doctors, dentists, CPA’s and other professionals can be intimidating to their client base. From the prospective of a professional this doesn’t make much sense. After all we are people that are similar in many ways to anyone else in the working world...

Twin Cities Estate Planning Networking

Posted on February 07, 2008
Networking, an essential ingredient in the recipe for success when starting a law firm. One of the first pieces of advice I received from solo attorneys is that networking is the best and fastest way to grow your business. To some networking is an arduous task that akin to pulling teeth (with apologies to my [...

The Law Office of James T. Anderson has arrived

Posted on January 30, 2008
After countless office visits and coversations with attorneys I have successfuly rented office space. I am renting space in the office building of a local attorney, Bill Vincent. The office is a perfect combination of an affordable space, good location and a helpful experienced attorney...

Office Space 180

Posted on January 20, 2008
At the time of the last post I was leaning towards a virtual office, but now I have pulled a 180 and will likely lease a physical office. In the past week I have visited around 12 office in the Twin Cities metro area, most being physical offices with a few virtual offices...

Office Space Search

Posted on January 14, 2008
The general public appears to have a rather cynical opinion of lawyers. They are often seen as overly litigious and combative. My search for office space has proven otherwise. Every lawyer that I have been in contact with has been extremely gracious and helpful in assisting me find office space that will suit my needs...

Fax Number

Posted on January 14, 2008
The first question that I had when deciding on how to handle faxes is do I need a separate line from the phone company. Originally I assumed that I would need to purchase a fax machine and set up a new line for that machine. I did some research, looked into the prices and as [...

Business Cards

Posted on January 13, 2008
Business cards, so small yet oh so important. Your business cared can tell a potential client a lot about your firm with just a few words. I contemplated creating my own but quickly realized that a professionals help is needed. Luckily a good friend of mine, Laura Negen is a graphic designer and she has [...

The trials and tribulations of a start up solo law firm

Posted on January 12, 2008
This space is dedicated to chronicle my efforts to start my own law firm in Minneapolis, MN. I will be practicing estate planning, probate and real estate transactions. I plan to write about everything from choosing a suitable office to picking letter head...

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